Windmill
Developer platform to turn scripts into workflows and UIs
The Lens
By Erik Loyd, SaaS CEO and former COO/CFO of an AWS Premier Partner.
Updated Jun 2026
Windmill turns your scripts (Python, TypeScript, Go, Bash, SQL) into scheduled jobs, API endpoints, workflows, and internal tools with UIs. Write a function, Windmill auto-generates the input form and handles scheduling, retries, permissions, and logging. It's like n8n met a proper IDE.
The self-hosted Community edition is free under AGPLv3 with generous limits: 5 users, unlimited flows, all core features. The Enterprise edition adds RBAC, audit logs, SSO, and support. Self-hosting runs via Docker Compose with Postgres. Setup takes under an hour. The platform is lightweight compared to alternatives. A 2GB RAM VM handles it comfortably. Moderate ops burden, mostly database maintenance.
Solo developers: the free tier covers everything you need. Run scripts on schedule, build internal dashboards, automate workflows. Small teams: 5 free users is generous. Growing teams: Enterprise pricing starts at ~$200/mo.
The catch: Windmill is less known than n8n or Retool. The community is smaller, which means fewer pre-built integrations and examples. If you need 400 pre-built connectors to SaaS tools, n8n is ahead. If you want to write actual code (not just drag-and-drop), Windmill is better.
Free vs Self-Hosted vs Paid
open coreFree (Self-Hosted Community)
5 users, unlimited jobs and flows, all workflow features (branching, loops, retries, approval steps), auto-generated UIs, scheduling, webhooks, script library. AGPLv3.
Paid (Self-Hosted Enterprise): ~$200/mo+
Unlimited users, RBAC, audit logs, SSO/SAML, worker groups, priority support, SLA.
Cloud
Windmill offers a managed cloud with a free tier (1,000 executions/month) and paid plans. Contact for pricing.
Self-Hosted Costs
Postgres + Windmill via Docker. A $20-40/mo VM handles small-to-medium workloads. Workers scale horizontally. Add VMs when you need more parallel execution.
Comparison
- n8n: More pre-built integrations (400+), visual-first workflow builder. Windmill is code-first.
- Retool: Better for complex internal tools UI. Windmill is better for script-centric automation.
- Prefect: Better for data pipeline orchestration specifically. Windmill is more general purpose.
- Temporal: Better for mission-critical durable workflows. Windmill is simpler for most use cases.
Verdict
The free 5-user tier covers small teams completely. Enterprise pricing is reasonable compared to Retool ($10/user/mo minimum) or n8n Cloud ($24/user/mo).
Free for up to 5 users self-hosted. Enterprise at ~$200/mo for larger teams. Code-first alternative to n8n.
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